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Protecting Sri Lanka's female labour force

01 Aug 2022

There have recently been several media reports of Sri Lankan women, particularly those engaged the apparel sector, shifting to sex work due to the economic hardships posed by the prevailing economic crisis. The Morning too recently reported the same, emphasising that some women are resorting to this in fear of being laid off by their employers due to the economic crisis. The number of women engaged in this profession due to the said circumstances may be low for the time being. However, that does not mean that these are or should be treated as isolated incidents, or the peak of the problem. This is highly likely to be the beginning of another social issue, because the economic hardships that pushed these women to engage in sex work are likely to keep affecting Sri Lankans for the foreesable future. At the same time, it is crucial to acknowledge, at least now, that there is a plethora of risks associated with this profession, to which those who enter this industry as well as those already engaged in this industry are exposed. In fact, when women shift to sex work from a completely unrelated profession, they are highly likely to be affected by these issues. For example, although there is a question as to whether or not sex work is legal, there are allegations of sex workers being threatened, blackmailed, and unlawfully arrested by police officers as well as various individuals and groups such as traffickers. At the same time, in a context where sex work is frowned upon by society, sex workers receive extremely little help or acceptance from their own fellow citizens. With these issues come massive challenges such as discrimination and stigma, which are likely to go up if the trend of apparel workers turning to sex work is allowed to continue without being addressed. At the same time, there is a massive risk of exploitation, trafficking, and sexual abuse, to which people, especially women, are likely to be subjected due to worsening economic hardships. Needless to say, the children of these women, especially girls, are also at risk due to the nature of this profession in the Sri Lankan context. This is not merely a matter of women choosing sex work as a profession. Understanding the context in which it happens is extremely crucial, because these women choose this profession due to limited options available to them in order to survive the worsening economic crisis. It is a sign that what we identify as the economic crisis is a much bigger and diverse issue, and goes beyond a mere lack of money. The Government must identify the importance of preventing social deterioration and exploitation of women due to the prevailing economic crisis, and take the necessary measures before this situation gets out of hand. It must also understand that this situation raises the importance of having in place a proper social security scheme, which not only addresses mainstream social issues, but also provides some solution to prevent people from having to choose professions they do not like or may jeopardise their safety and wellbeing in the long run. In addition, it can look into re-employing these women in other industries that urgently need to be revived.  However, to take the necessary measures, the country’s political culture and politicians need to be sensitive to people's issues. The country has seen, on countless occasions, how politicians downplay serious issues simply because of their political, personal, and religious ideologies and narrow-minded interests of their voter base. They should put aside such narrow agendas, and understand that this issue, if left unaddressed, has the potential to create a series of social issues which will be more difficult to address.  However, if taken seriously at least now, the authorities can bring about some long due legal, policy, and social changes to address the plight of all those engaged in sex work.  


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